Sepp Maier sees win in Berlin as crucial for Bayern, has buried hatchet with Klinsmann

In a recent interview, former Bayern Munich and West Germany goalkeeper Sepp Maier said there’s no longer any bad blood between him and current Hertha Berlin manager Jürgen Klinsmann.

Maier’s dispute with Klinsmann originated in 2004 when Klinsmann was head coach of the German National Team and decided to dismiss Maier as the team’s goalkeeping coach. In the buildup to the 2006 World Cup finals in Germany, Maier had been rather vociferous about his misgivings for Klinsmann. Now, though, he says that everything is fine between the two of them (AZ).

Maier sees no point in dwelling on the past:

I have nothing against Klinsmann now. Those times are gone. What do I want today with what happened then? I always look into the future, not back.

Looking forward to Bayern’s massive clash against Klinsmann’s Berlin this weekend, Maier said three points is an absolute must for Bayern if they want to keep pace with the teams ahead of them in the table:

That’s the precondition — that they win in Berlin on Sunday — so they keep up with Leipzig a bit. If they lose against Hertha now, then it’ll look bad with respect to the championship.

When he was asked about Klismann’ appointment as Hertha Berlin manager, Maier gave a somewhat diplomatic answer, saying he hopes it works out for both parties:

Hertha BSC must know what they’ve done. I hope it does Hertha some good, that they at least are not relegated. That alone would be a major success for [Klinsmann].

Photo by Matthias Kern/Bongarts/Getty Images

Maier also revealed that he’s still in close communication with Oliver Kahn, who was recently appointed to Bayern’s executive board. In light of the ferocious tenacity Kahn possessed during his playing days, Maier joked that Kahn will have to be a bit gentler in his new role with the club:

When you have worked together for fourteen years, you’re obviously still in contact. I don’t know whether he can be like he was in goal. He’ll have to be a little gentler with people.

Photo by Sandra Behne/Bongarts/Getty Images